>>Americans had to sell everything to survive the last 8 years, no money to invest, no money to advance their children.<<
Americans who lived paycheck to paycheck because they had over spent their budget on ten or more different credit cards, had to sell everything to survive the last 8 years, no money to invest, no money to advance their children.
On the other hand Americans who invested their savings while living under the level of their neighbors, the Joneses had very few problems.
A lot did use their homes as ATMs, and when their foreclosures destroyed property values for those around them who lived frugally, there was no respite for them.